The discussions focused on the ongoing and emerging challenges South Korea’s workers face across the garment and footwear sector, which employs approximately 60 million people worldwide and 45 million in Asia alone.
At a roundtable organised by the Korea Federation of Textile Industries on 26 March, Svarer challenged longstanding industry practices amid increasing pressures stemming from issues such as low pay, long working hours, and limited opportunities, especially for women.
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“Treating workers as the cheapest and most easily replaceable input is no longer tenable. People remain the most valuable asset in the garment industry,” Svarer said.
Svarer noted the difference today is how widespread and severe these pressures have become, adding that there is now a “growing recognition” that worker wellbeing is directly tied to the long-term performance of supply chains.
RISE, founded in 2023, unites BSR’s HERproject, Gap’s P.A.C.E., CARE, and Better Work to promote systemic change.
The initiative has reached more than one million workers in 10 countries, foregrounding the needs and perspectives of women while providing benefits across their wider workplaces.
One area highlighted during the discussion as a practical lever for change was digital wage payments, which Svarer said can deliver efficiency gains of at least 50% while reducing staff turnover and improving productivity and trust between workers and management.
Svarer also outlined three “deeply interconnected” priorities for the initiative, namely financial health, safe and respectful workplaces, and climate resilience, arguing that progress depends on addressing them together rather than as standalone programmes.
In addition, the Seoul discussions underscored the growing influence of Asian manufacturers in shaping labour practices, as Korean apparel producers manage large operations across Asia and Central America that employ hundreds of thousands of workers.
“Supplier voices have too often been absent from these conversations,” Svarer said, adding that bringing manufacturers into governance is critical because they “actually run factories and have a responsibility to look after their workforces.”
ShinWon Corporation was cited as one manufacturer expanding worker-support programmes. The Korean fashion company operates 25 entities in 10 countries and employs more than 30,000 people, and holds a seat on RISE’s steering board.
Its social compliance work includes financial literacy education and savings support, and its vertically integrated structure was presented as a way to extend wellbeing initiatives to earlier, often less-visible tiers of the supply chain.
Svarer stated that manufacturers’ direct relationships with workers offer both influence and responsibility in supporting wellbeing across supply chains. Industry practices are shifting as worker conditions become increasingly tied to business resilience and competitiveness.
